It is a time of fear in the face of freedom, a time of an emptying country and swelling cities, a time for the widening of previous roads and the opening of new paths, yet a time when these paths are mined by knowing algorithms of the all-seeing eye. It is the time of the warrior's peace and the miser's charity, when the planting of a seed is an act of conscientious objection. These are the times when maps fade, old landmarks crumble and direction is lost. Forwards is backwards now, so we glance sideways at the strange lands through which we are all passing, knowing for certain only that our destination has disappeared. We are unready to meet these times, but we proceed nonetheless, adapting as we wander, reshaping the Earth with every tread. Behind us we have left the old times, the standard times, the high times. Welcome to the irregular times.

Today, when he presumed that you wouldn’t notice, because you’re too busy partying on New Year’s Eve, Barack Obama signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act. The National Defense Authorization Act gives the government the power to grab anyone living within U.S. borders – citizen or non-citizen – and put that person into prison for the rest of their lives, without ever charging the person with a crime or putting the person on trial.

The National Defense Authorization Act gives the military the new role, once outlawed under Posse Comitatus, of acting as law enforcement across the United States. Thanks to President Obama’s signature on the NDAA, Americans who have never enlisted in the military or participated in any military action will now be subject to the harsh standards of military law. We all can now be treated as if we are “enemy combatants” – with no evidence that we’ve ever done anything wrong.

The National Defense Authorization Act gives the federal government the power to throw anyone – citizen or non-citizen – into prison. The imprisonment can last the person’s entire lifetime. No substantiated evidence against the imprisoned person is required. No criminal charges are required. No criminal trial is required.

These provisions are plainly in violation of the U.S. Constitution, which promises due process and fair trial before people, citizens or not, can be deprived of their liberty.

When Barack Obama signed the National Defense Authorization into law today, he promised that he wouldn’t use the law’s powers against American citizens.

Back in 2008, Barack Obama promised that he would end attacks on our civil liberties and restore the rule of law. Signing the National Defense Authorization Act into law is a direct contradiction of that promise, as a new attack on our civil liberties and undermining the rule of constitutional law.

Besides, even if you have trust that Barack Obama himself would never abuse the powers of the National Defense Authorization Act, what about the President after Obama? Do you trust that President?

What if Rick Perry, or Rick Santorum is the next President of the United States? By signing the National Defense Authorization Act into law, Barack Obama granted all future presidents with the power to throw Americans into prison for life on the basis of nothing more than an unproven accusation against the prisoner.

There is no good excuse for Barack Obama’s approval of the National Defense Authorization Act today. There is also no good excuse for any American who sincerely supports the preservation of the Bill of Rights, to vote for the re-election of Barack Obama in 2012.

We really have to get some of this “official” government crap removed: the NDAA and all the other illegal (and for which the telecom industry got “retroactive immunity”) surveillance on us (all the way back to the flawed Patriot Act), the money in politics, corporations as people with rights to fuck up real people’s lives, unlimited Presidential power, the Wall Street – K street – Pennsylvania Avenue connection, lobbyists doing “business” with Congress, etc. (this list can become VERY long) and get back to using the Constitution and the Bill of Rights (ie. the rule of law) by prosecuting all the bad guys (which will include most of Washington DC politicians as well as a number of state people) for the financial and other fraud and misfeasance, have publicly funded elections with term limits for everyone, get off the war mentality/economy, bring back needed social programs and provide real education for our kids (not the pap that’s covered in standardized testing – a bunch of piece-meal facts that are unrelated as far as the student is taught), and reform health-care so it isn’t “for profit” but to provide services to the citizenry. There are so many more topics on my “wish list” that i’m reasonably sure have a negligible probability of actually becoming this way that i could go on for pages. Please feel free to add your own – and we can send it to the Occupy people to give them even more reason for being.

i think this is going to be a pivotal year (whatever that means) in my and our lives due to the fact that we’re witnessing the actual physical/cosmic change that will occur with the various celestial events like, to mention just one of three eclipses coming this year, (especially) that of our sun crossing the vast galactic plane. In combination with all the other strange stuff (like the Earth’s magnetic field weakening, the peak of a solar cycle, and tons more) going on – it’s gonna be interesting, even if it isn’t the purported “end of the world.”

Here we are, like boarding a roller coaster of real life events, celebrating with anticipation, some hopeful thoughts, some fears, before it all transpires.

Sandy, your memory is short if you think Barack Obama is the worst President we’ve ever elected. Obama is profoundly disappointing, and I oppose his re-election, but George W. Bush was much, much worse.

I agree he’s a person who wants to look good with talk but no one knows how he really is inside . If this law is even passed America it’s self can’t be know as a free country every right is just being taking away , no one can understand that everything can change with such a law like this it’s sad to see what people are becoming these days with there ideas and so called freedom for the people . Obama your THE WORST PRESIDENT EVER THOUGHT OF BEING ELECTED OR TO BE KNOWN .

The good news is our fearless leader signed it into law “with reservations”. Of course those alleged reservations don’t have the force of law, but the dumbbells like ourselves who actually voted for him and believed him when he spoke so eloquently about “restoring the writ of habeus corpus” need to be told something.

The National Defense Authorization Act is a United States federal law that has been enacted for each of the past 49 years to specify the budget and expenditures of the United States Department of Defense. (Wikipedia) which was passed by a 97-3 vote in the Senate. (Not 47 Republicans against and 51 Democrats for…I imagine you are referencing Section 1031:

SEC. 1031. AFFIRMATION OF AUTHORITY OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES TO DETAIN COVERED PERSONS PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE.

Affirms that the authority of the President to use all necessary and appropriate force pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force includes the authority for U.S. Armed Forces to detain covered persons pending disposition under the law of war. Defines a “covered person” as a person who: (1) planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001, or harbored those responsible for such attacks; or (2) was part of or substantially supported al Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners.

1031(e) Authorities- Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect existing law or authorities, relating to the detention of United States citizens, lawful resident aliens of the United States or any other persons who are captured or arrested in the United States.

Mike, the legislation is different every year. It’s not the same law year to year, when there are significant amendments. To suggest that the National Defense Authorization Act this year was just a simple re-iteration of past years’ legislation is wildly inaccurate.

I don’t think you were following the NDAA very closely if you’re suggesting that the 11/17 vote was the be-all-and-end-all of this legislation.

You also haven’t been tracking the Irregular Times coverage of this legislation if you think that we’re laying “all” of the responsibility for this year’s shameful National Defense Authorization Act on Barack Obama. Barack Obama does have a huge share of the responsibility for the entry into law of the new authorization of imprisonment of people in the USA, citizen and non-citizen, without criminal charge or criminal trial. I don’t see how anyone could say that Obama doesn’t have responsibility for this problem, given that it’s his final signature on the law – legislation that he could have blocked. However, we have also noted the responsibility of the members of Congress who voted for this affront to the rule of law.

Personally, I jus think that he is a major league puppet. I mean he sits there and says what the Congress tells him to say and get paid to lie to the public about any and everything jus so we can b distracted from the real issues we have to face day to day. Congress would rather we suffer become impoverished and slaves than to fix problems and stop there flow of dirty money and false hidden agendas. They plan on makin things much much more worse with each new president. What y’all fail to acknowledge is that it doesn’t matter who is elected. One president after another even if they wana do the right things or not, there strings will always b pulled and to think that a new president can make or break us is pure stupidity and lack of information on the matter. If we, said ppl, don’t do somethin about this whole situation them the ‘government will continue to become a tyrant and continue to further its plan probley enslave us and make infallible amounts of money not t

Not to mention experiment on us. We will inevitably become lab rats. Those of us that r emprisoned wrongfully will become their lab rats. There will b nun we can do about it. We need to take action againdt them. They r committing treason and we need to execute these bastards

This i know for sure, is a lead way for a dreadful time to come and marks the passing of the national sunday law and putting into prison of those who refuse to abide by it but, despite all this, i know my God is still in control. obama and all the others, will soon have their fear share of bitter punishment for this gruesome act they have done. God will give them their fair judgement!

If you think he’s fooling you your right, but he’s not the only one, he has to have support, and he has to get advise from some where? There are ways for which the congress and the senate can repeal , or over turn law that are unconstutional. Why has no one come forward, is there not a movement in congress or the senate to withdraw such gross miss conduct of the presidentual office against the people of the United States? The fact is that there are none, at this time. And it’s doubtful that there will be, offers too much power to the goverment, in fact all of us who are praticpating right now could go to prision soon, far this. The times are not unknown, and the abominations of man toward himself, is not hidden. It is well documented, in detail. Just dust off that bible in the corner and read it! Every thing that this president has done is not supprising, Those who think it’s better to listen to some prosperity preacher that draws crowds 10’s of thousands, while parking lot of your local church has five or ten cars in the parking lot! God is in control and his prophesies will come to passes, but God’s people will be spared the worst of it, and believe it or not it’s going get alot worse for those who stay behind after he comes.
You had better open your eyes, see what’s going on around you, your rights are going away and the consitution of the United States of America, will be Pre- hostorical document!

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